SWAKOPMUND - The National Road Safety Council has spent a total of N$1.1 million on corridor management institutions in Namibia.
This includes N$500000 provided to the Trans Kalahari Corridor (TKC), NRSC chairperson Eliphas !Owos-Oab said at the TKC Secretariat gala dinner held at Swakopmund on Monday as part of the secretariat’s 20th anniversary celebrations.
The secretariat commemorated its 20th anniversary with a cycle challenge from Rustenburg, South Africa, through Botswana to Walvis Bay, Namibia. Thirty cyclists from Namibia, Botswana and South Africa participated in the challenge that concluded on Monday at the port of Walvis Bay. “The international road assessment programme estimates that 50% of casualties occur on around 10% of the road network. So, if we can make that 10% of the road network safer, we would certainly achieve a 50% reduction in associated casualties,” !Owos-Oab said.
He further said the council invested in the Arandis Emergency Response and Traffic Management Centre, which operates an intelligent transport system-based surveillance over a stretch of close to 50 kilometres along the B2 road adjacent to Arandis.
The strategic objective of this intervention is to facilitate the implementation of intelligent transportation systems solutions, which aim to enhance the efficiency and user-friendliness of the corridor, while also lowering road traffic crashes and incidences. “This system, when fully rolled out, will, among others, support early warning and detection systems for road users in the event of incidents and will lead to safer corridor mobility,” !Owos-Oab stressed.
-Nampa